Essay: Full-time ministry drains too many clergy and church budgets. Part-time pastors can help
G JEFFREY MACDONALD says – in an article first published on Religion News Service – that the happier, healthier future of ministry is in part-time clergy…
Nicaragua: Crackdown on Catholic Church spreads fear among the faithful, there and in exile
GIOVANNA DELL’ORTO, of Associated Press, reports on the ongoing impact of President Daniel Ortega’s crackdown on churches in Nicaragua…
Essay: Burned out, exhausted, leaving – new US survey finds clergy are not OK
MICHAEL WOOLF, senior minister of Lake Street Church of Evanston in the US state of Illinois, says, in an article first published on Religion News Service, that this isn’t the time for US congregations to be facing a massive leadership transition…
Audit of Spanish Church abuses finds more than 2,000 victims
Madrid, SpainReuters An investigation commissioned by the Spanish Catholic Church into child sexual abuse by members of the clergy and non-clerical staff has so far identified 1,383 complaints and 2,056 victims, an audit of the inquiry showed on Thursday. The Spanish Church has been grappling with an abuse scandal since a 2021 investigation by El […]
“Let’s not lose hope”: Nicaragua’s exiled clergy and faithful keep up struggle for human rights at Mass
GIOVANNA DELL’ORTO, of Associated Press, reports from Miami…
Catholic Church in Chile: Justice eludes victims of clergy sex abuse years after the crisis exploded
MARÍA TERESA HERNÁNDEZ, of Associated Press, reports…
In the US, mainline clergy are more liberal than their congregants – survey
United States RNS A new US survey of mainline clergy finds those leading the historic denominations that once shaped the American Protestant scene are far more liberal than their congregants on a host of political and social issues. The Public Religion Research Institute survey of 3,066 mainline clergy, released on Thursday, shows that about half identify with […]
In the US, United Methodist pastors feel worse and worry more than a decade ago
United StatesRNS United Methodist clergy have been through the wringer in recent years, with a worldwide pandemic, a church schism and the ongoing decline of one of the nation’s largest Protestant denominations. Those stresses have likely taken a toll on their health, a new report shows. A survey of 1,200 United Methodist clergy found that half have […]
Changing landscape: As churches shrink and pastors retire, creative workarounds are redefining ministry
As older clergy get set to retire in the US, there are few younger seminarians to replace them – and few churches that can afford to pay them. ELIZABETH E EVANS reports for Religion News Service…
Sight-Seeing: Can chatbots write inspirational and wise sermons?
JOANNE M PIERCE, professor emerita of religious studies at College of the Holy Cross, says, in an article first published on The Conversation, explains what the limitations are…